SGU  Stranger Things
by kimmy4eytj
Summary: Volker and Brody set up a joke on Eli.


**Title:** Stranger Things  
><strong>Author:<strong> kimmy4eytj  
><strong>Rating:<strong> K+  
><strong>Content Flags:<strong> unexplained events  
><strong>Spoilers: <strong>none  
><strong>Characters: <strong>Eli, Volker, Brody  
><strong>Word Count:<strong> 953  
><strong>Summary: <strong>Volker & Brody set up a joke on Eli.  
><strong>Author's Notes:<strong> Written for LiveJournal comm **sgu_challenge** prompt #071 "Paranormal."  
><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> SG Universe is owned by MGM, not me, darn it. Since they denied us the pleasure of these characters' company, I'm using them entirely without profit for my own playtime. Comments are welcome and thanks.

"Seriously. Why am I busting my butt? Again, I might add." He groaned and took a quick look around his compartment. "_Talking to yourself again, Eli,"_ he thought. He pressed the heel of his hand to his brow and squinted shut his burning eyes.

It was late into the night, or early in the morning depending on your perspective. He shifted his position on the stool, his butt having gone numb several hours ago. Colonel Young had him checking Kino footage of unexplored areas of _Destiny_ in hope of finding spare parts. The Ancients surely stocked parts somewhere on this ship. They really needed to find them. And soon.

Eli frowned, as a spasm cramped his left buttock. "Oh, this is ridiculous." Frustrated, Eli got up and limped away from the console. He balanced against the hatch and shook out his left leg. A sharp tingling worked its way up that leg from his toes. He arched backward, his hands rubbing his buttocks, feeling a pinprick sensation, like a million ant bites.

Eli returned to the console. He sat down to input instructions to send the Kino into search mode. He'd decided he'd had enough for the day and he'd let it wander the ship while he took a nap. His muscles were stiff and protested any attempt at use beyond their limits.

Knocking drew his attention to the hatch.

"Hey, Eli. You got a minute?" Volker said.

"As long as you're not giving me something else to do, yes."

Volker smiled and walked over to Eli's console. He set some papers down along side Eli's laptop.

"Sorry, I'm afraid so. Rush told me to give these equations to you. He said he wanted them proofed, and back by this morning."

Eli harrumphed. "It's already morning. And I'm going to bed. Rush can take his proofs and ..."

Volker laughed, raising his hands in surrender. "You won't get any argument from me about Rush's orders. I get enough of them myself."

Something white and filmy caught Eli's eye in the monitor and he turned his head to check it. "Hey, did you see that?" Eli swiveled his seat around to be fully in front of the controls.

"See what?"

"I don't know … I thought I saw something?" Eli flicked a few switches, his hands flying over the console.

A pale apparition slid across the screen, faint and billowy, seemingly floating past the Kino.

"There! Did you see that?" Eli shouted, his hands flicking switches. He turned back to Volker clearly agitated.

"What? It's just a corridor," Volker said, shrugging his shoulders.

"You didn't _see_ that?" Eli said, pointing at the monitor.

Volker shook his head and looked closely at Eli. He noticed his eyes were wide and dilated, clearly excited. "What do you think you saw?"

"Oh, come on! How could you _not_ see that ... floaty … white … thing?" Even as he said it, Eli realized how he must sound. No wonder Volker was looking at him curiously.

"Look, I'll show you-"

"Eli, there's nothing there."

"Let me just rewind this feed. I always record while I have an active Kino." His hands flew over his laptop at geek speed. "Here. Now watch carefully." He waved Volker closer to his monitor.

Volker stepped alongside Eli and peered at the monitor watching the selected playback.

Eli jerked and pointed at the screen. "There! Did you see that?" Eli screeched.

Volker looked down at Eli and shook his head. "There's nothing there, Eli."

"What the-" Eli kept turning his head between Volker and the monitor.

Volker placed his hands on his shoulder's and twisted the chair around until he faced him. He bent down level with his eyes. Volker spoke to him like he was speaking to a frightened child. "Why don't you call it a night, Eli. Get some sleep."

Eli finally nodded his head. "Maybe you're right." He glanced one last time at the screen before Volker shut it down.

[][][]

Dale waited until Eli stumbled over to his bunk and laid down before exiting his room. As he hit the mechanism to shut the hatch, he glanced at Eli. He was staring at the ceiling, his earbuds already in his ears, and he fidgeting nervously with his iPhone controls. Dale smiled and walked away.

Nearing the Bridge, Dale saw Brody down the corridor and yelled out to him, "Hey! It was brilliant. You should have seen him." Dale laughed as he caught up to Brody, slapping him on the back.

"What are you talking about?"

"Eli. The prank. It worked beautifully." Dale continued, smiling widely, "I tell you, Brody, Riley would be proud of you."

"I didn't do anything."

Dale stopped and looked confounded at Brody. "What?"

"I was waiting for your signal to start the feed."

"But-" Dale turned to look back down the corridor, then back at Brody. "So that wasn't you?"

Brody shook his head. "What happened?"

Dale's hand went to his chin as he thought, then looked back down the corridor. "It was just like you said. A white, floaty, flimsy thing on the monitor."

"So, what do you think it was?" Brody asked.

Dale slowly shook his head. "I don't know." He turned back to Brody. "But, if it wasn't you … what, or who was it?"

Brody shrugged and glanced back down the corridor. He shivered down his spine, then turned to Dale and jerked his head. "Come on, we got work to finish."

"Yeah," Dale said slowly, then followed Brody up the corridor toward the Control Interface Room. Throughout the rest of the night, he couldn't help looking over his shoulder, occasionally, just to be sure nothing was there. 


End file.
